Laundry can be quite a chore for some people but done right, you can make it easy and save yourself time and space. Whether you're new to folding laundry or just feel like you might have been doing it wrong for years, this wikiHow can help you get the perfect fold (no matter the item for folding). Just see the sections listed above to find the instructions for what you're trying to fold.

Steps

Part 1

Shirts

Buttoned Shirts

1

Button some of the buttons. Button the top, bottom, and middle buttons. The other buttons should remain undone. This will help keep your shirt tidy, but will also help unnecessary wrinkles from forming where tension may occur along the button line.

2

Lay the shirt down and smooth any wrinkles. Lay the shirt face-down in front of you and smooth out any wrinkles with your hand.

3

Fold the left side over. Find the fold point at the top of the left shoulder. This is the spot in between the shoulder seam and the neck seam, where you would usually see a store bought shirt folded. Now, envision an imaginary line going all the way down to the bottom hem from that point at the shoulder. Fold the left side in along that line and smooth out the sleeve so that it lies flat.

4

Fold the sleeve. Now, at the shoulder for the sleeve, you’ll see that the edge of flattened sleeve creates a line. Pull this sleeve edge over and match it up with the fold you just made on the side of the shirt. This should create a smooth triangular fold at the shoulder/armpit area. Now, take the cuff of the sleeve and fold it up so that the cuff rests in the circle of the collar. This should create a line at the elbow.

5

Fold the other side. Fold up the other side of the shirt using this same process.

6

Fold up the bottom of the shirt. Take the bottom of the shirt and fold it up a few inches. This bottom fold should take up about a quarter of the shirt. Take the new “bottom” line where you made the fold and bring that up to be level with the shoulders of the shirt. Flip the whole thing over and you’re done. You should now have a nicely folded shirt.

Casual Shirts

1

Lay the shirt face down. Lay the shirt face down on a flat surface and smooth out any wrinkles.

2

Fold over the left side. Draw an imaginary line from the middle point between the collar and shoulder seams, all the way down to the hem of the shirt. Fold the shirt along this line, bringing the left side of the shirt in to the center.

3

Repeat for the other side. Repeat that same process for the other side of the shirt.

4

Bring the bottom hem up to the shoulder line. Now, fold up the bottom of the shirt so that the hem meets up with the line of the shoulders.

5

Done! Flip the whole thing over. You should now have a folded shirt.

Using a clipboard can make this process easier and cleaner-looking. Simply center the top of the clipboard over the collar of the shirt and fold around it, sliding it out when you’re done.

Japanese Quick Fold

1

Lay out the shirt. Lay the shirt out flat in front of you, face-up. Orient the shirt so that the neck is on your left.

2

Pinch the shoulder. On side of the shirt furthest from you, pinch the shirt with your left hand halfway between the sleeve seam and the neck seam, at the top of the shoulder.

3

Pinch the midsection. Imagine a line going straight down that side of the shirt On that same side of the shirt, grasp the shirt with your right hand halfway down the shirt. This will be where you make the bottom fold of the shirt, just like in a store. At this point, pinch these two spots, your left hand should be parallel with your right hand.

You will want to be sure that your pinch is getting through both layers of the shirt.

4

Fold the shirt. Keeping a firm pinch, cross your left hand over your right hand to bring the shoulder pinch down to the bottom hem of the shirt. Grab the hem in that same pinch with your left hand so that you have all four layers together. Your arms should now be crossed.

5

Uncross your arms. Making sure to keep a firm grasp on the shirt at the two points you have grasped, uncross your arms as you lift up the shirt. Keep the fabric between your two hands taut and give the shirt a shake to get out any wrinkles.

6

Lay the shirt down to finish the fold. Lay the shirt face down on the folding surface temporarily, so that you can get the loose sleeve flat, then fold the pinched side over. The shirt should now be facing upwards and b completely, neatly folded.

Part 2

Pants

Pants with a crease

1

Grasp the crease. Take a hold of the bottom of the crease at the hem of one leg and then use your other hand to grasp the crease at the other end (this usually is somewhere around the crotch). Give the pants a slight shake and hold the fabric taut to smooth the leg out.

You should always be sure that the fly is zipped on a pair of pants before folding, and that all buttons and clasps are done.

2

Lay the leg down. Using that grasped crease as one edge, lay the leg of the pant down so that it is flat and the crease forms on edge.

3

Repeat for the other side. Repeat for the other side, laying the second leg down on top of the first. The two front creases should be on the same side, one on top of the other.

4

Fold in half. Generally, you should only fold the pants in half from here, although some people will fold the pants into thirds or quarters. Folding once is the better idea because it will create fewer horizontal lines in the leg of the pant and the only one that is created will be at the knee, which is prone to creasing anyway.

Handing dress pants is the better idea, when possible.

Pants with no crease

1

Lay one leg flat. Lay one leg out flat on the table, with the side seams on either side (not at the center).

2

Fold the pants in half. Grabbing the far side seam on the other leg, bring it over so that the pants are folded in half. The half fold should follow roughly with the crotch seam.

3

Straighten everything out. Straighten the legs and make sure all of the seams are aligned, to decrease wrinkles.

4

Fold the pants into thirds. You can now fold the pants into thirds or quarters, as you prefer.

Part 3

Other Clothing Items

1

Fold a skirt. Lay the skirt down on a flat surface and splay the fabric completely so it’s as flat as possible. Fold it in half, bringing one side of the skirt over to the other, and then fold it in half again (the same way). Now, if it has a flare, take the bottom corner and bring it over to the other bottom corner. This should make a triangular fold which makes the skirt much more of a rectangle. You can then fold the waist down to the hem and your skirt should be nicely folded.

2

Choose how you want to fold socks. Many people use variations of folding one sock over the other, so that the elastic holds both together. However, this stretches out the elastic over time and is not preferable. It is better to lay one sock on top of the other and then roll them up like a sleeping bag. Put socks away in a drawer in a tidy row, with the swirl of the roll facing upward. This way you can identify and pull the socks you want without having to dig around through your drawer.

3

Fold underwear. Whether you’re folding women’s or men’s underwear, the process will be functionally the same. Lay them flat with the back side on the table. Fold in one side and then the other to fold the underwear into thirds. Then, fold the top seam down to the ⅔ point and bring the bottom up to cover it.

Fold boxers by folding them in half, along the crotch seam, and then into thirds.

Part 4

Fold Linens

1

Fold a fitted sheet. Fitted sheets are one of the hardest linens to fold and many people give up, but it’s not actually as hard as it seems. By nesting the corners of the sheets, it becomes much easier to fold the sheet and get a very neat final look. You’ll find videos and instructions in the Fold a Fitted Sheet wikiHow.

2

Fold blankets. Various blankets and sheets can all be folded very simply. Generally, this involves folding a blanket into sixths or eighths. While it might seem like you need to people to fold large blankets, with practice it’s very simple to do on your own.

3

Fold towels. There are lots of different ways that you can fold towels. Which was you choose will depend on why you’re folding it. You might want a more decorative fold if you have guests over, or you might want something more basic for storage. Keep in mind that rolling towels, like you’d roll a sleeping bag, is technically the most space efficient way to fold towels.

Fold normal towels for storage either by rolling them or folding them into sixths or quarters.